I am ten weeks pregnant with my 2nd child. I am paying for this child alone. I make too much to apply for any assistance and the new baby's father is not in the picture to help me financially. The obgyn I chose is really close to my job helping out with appts and time but they are insisting that I pay for the whole delivery and office vists by my 6th month being $475 every 4 months. This is going to be really hard for me to do so I was wondering if all doctors charge now a days upfront costs. They are calculating this for my 2009 deductible plus my 20% after the deductible is met.
My OB collected upfront. I paid it out over several months with each, but was paid in full by 6 or 7 months along. I don't know if every OB does this or not.
Good luck and I hope everything works out.
I think it is fairly standard practice but have you checked some of the private charities? Catholic charities helps people dealing with many different situations and the Presbyterian Children's Home area office operates out of my church, they have funds available to help families and perhaps you could get some assistance or direction from them.
My insurance company refused to pay for my tubal so that $600 for that came out of my pocket. My sitation was a bit unusual, we found out late in the game that this would not be covered and I think partially because it was my third baby with him, my doctor let me pay it out after I had the baby. Again, an unusual situation.
I vaguely remember something needing to be paid out beforehand with one of the pregnancies so again, I think upfront payment is standard. Realistically, after you have the baby, they have no way to "make" you pay beyond your word and any concern you might have for your credit. When I did not require prior payment, I wound up losing several hundred dollars a year when credit cards were maxed out or people just didn't pay me after I delivered the service. This is particularly dicey in the current economic situation so I would see few doctors, particularly with no prior relationship, providing services without payment.
The upside is that figuring out how to do this will allow you to have the baby and not worry about owing the doctor money. My other advice would be to file a paternity suit the minute that child is born or earlier if you can and have its resolution dependent on paternity tests, etc. If your child will qualify for Medicaid, you will be able to go through the attorney general's office at no cost. Otherwise you can go to the county law library, copy the necessary forms, write up the papers and file it yourself.
Hi P.
I just had my baby 9 months ago. My doctor, Dr Alexis at Harris Southwest is allowing me to pay in monthly installments. Anything I can pay is fine. Last month because we didnt have much to send I sent in $5. Their billing dept is extremely helpful and they said that's would be fine as long as we are showing that we want to keep this account in good standing. Meaning no late payments period. So that's very nice. Not many doctors help that way. I payed I think 500 up front and 500 the day of delivery. Then my insurance kicked in but I still have 20% percent left. So that's what I'm still paying on. I'm praying for you and your baby.
Hi P.
Have you decided that you do not want the father to be in the baby's life or did he just run away from his obligations? I am only asking because if he just ran away, you will be able to collect 1/2 of all your medical bills (that are related to the pregnancy and birth) once you establish that he is the father from a DNA test. This will be added to his child support account.
I would also contact WIC for free milk, cheese, beans, cereal, carrots, etc, while you are pregnant. It is NOT welfare and it is NOT foodstamps. You would be amazed at how much money you can be making and still qualify for it. When I was pregnant with my 2nd child, my husband and I were BOTH working and we qualified for WIC while I was pregant and until my last child turned 5! WIC will pretty much qualify you for it if you have any children under the age of 5 and if you are pregnant. My friend talked me into applying because our medical bills were so high during my pregnancy. (I had gestational diabetes). I was very against taking any government assistance because of my pride. Once I began receiving coupons for free milk, cheese, beans and other items, I was so grateful. With their help, I was able to put more money towards the medical bills, which caused less stress on me during my pregnancy.
Kudos to you for sticking this out and I admire you for your strength!
P.,
My OB does this also...We are due in May and have to have our $2K deductible in by February. Luckily, we are 100% after that 2K, but it is hard to come up with an extra $500/mo, especially during the holidays! As for whether a lot of docs do this now, yes they do. When we had our first about 3 1/2 years ago, they didn't. I think they do this now because a lot of people weren't paying on the backend, so they figured they needed to get at least the deductible up front so that in case the client doesn't pay the rest, at least they got that amount...it stinks, but I guess I can see where they are coming from.
try apply for http://www.chipmedicaid.com/english/cover.htm#perinatal
Mine did the same thing. It's the only way they're sure they will get paid.
S.
Have you thought about going to a midwife? I was in a similar situation when I was pregnant with my daughter, and they were a little cheaper. Plus, I got more emotional assistance than I ever could have gotten from an OBGYN. The midwife I went to is in Garland - their website is www.fmcdallas.com and they were GREAT. I know some people are opposed to the whole midwife thing, but my experience was awesome. And when it comes time to have your baby, you don't have to have it at your house. You can go to their birth center (at the same building in Garland) which is what I did or you can go to a hospital and they will meet you there.
